


What Did They Do With All The Leola Root?

by deepspacevoyagers



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Gen, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-24
Updated: 2018-01-24
Packaged: 2019-03-08 23:25:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13468824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deepspacevoyagers/pseuds/deepspacevoyagers
Summary: Tom Paris steps into Quark's Bar and makes a deal.





	What Did They Do With All The Leola Root?

Quark always noted who came into his bar. It didn’t matter if he was pouring drinks, berating his employees or making sure that the dabo tables remained rigged; he made keeping an eye on the door a habit. After all, knowing his customers made for good business, and it never hurt to watch out for when Odo would enter the bar unannounced, ready to accuse him for one thing or another - never mind that Odo was in the Gamma Quadrant.

Which is why he did a double take when a certain man, dressed in a Starfleet uniform, entered the bar one day and headed straight for the counter. He was long used to seeing Starfleet types enjoy his bar, just as he was used to seeing their latinum, but something in this man made him narrow his eyes.

“I know you,” Quark stated with a spark of recognition as the man slid into the seat in front of him.

“You’re the one who stopped my perfectly legitimate sale to an ensign who genuinely cared about his parents, seven years ago.”

“That’s right,” the man said, extending a hand. “I’m Tom Paris. _USS Voyager_.”

Quark’s eyes widened and put down the glass he was polishing. “ _Voyager_? Well then, in the spirit of friendship between our peoples, and celebrating Voyager’s return, as far as I’m concerned, we never had such a dispute. Would you care for a drink, a taste of home? My bar has all of the finest drinks from Earth and other Alpha Quadrant favorites. Prune juice. Romulan Ale! You having collected seven year’s worth of pay is worth celebrating. Or maybe you just want root beer," he finished, sounding disgusted.

“Root beer sounds great.”

“Fine. One root beer, coming right up.”

As he prepared the sickening beverage, Quark inquired, “So, then, Lieutenant Paris, what brings you all the way to DS9?”

Paris took a sip of the drink and smiled, looking pleased. “Actually, I’m here for business. I’m interested in acquiring something from you.”

“Say no more.” Leaning forward, Quark widened his eyes in anticipation of the profits to come.

“You know, my customers have been talking about _Voyager_ and its return all day long. Especially Morn. There’s a high interest in your ship and the Delta Quadrant. I managed to get a copy of that holoprogram, what’s it called, _Photons Be Free_? And the waiting list to play that is over a month long. So, perhaps you have other holoprogams from the Delta Quadrant for sale? Any _Malon Love Slaves_? _Hirogen Love Slaves_? Or any interesting trinkets to part with?”

Paris, who looked like his eyes were about pop out, nearly choked on his root beer.

“No, but we did have Captain Proton-“

“-So do I.”

“Fair Haven, a recreation of an Irish town-“

“-I think Chief O’Brien may be interested in that.”

“Captain Janeway’s Victorian holonovels-“

"-Pass.”

“A Talaxian holoresort program-“

“Fine. You mean you came here just to trade holoprograms?”

“Well, not just that,” Paris said nonchalantly, finishing his drink.

“I came here to aquire some Romulan Ale for the rest of the senior staff, before it becomes illegal again. Apart from the holoprograms you're interested in, I’ll pay a reasonable amount for the rest of your stock. I’ll also throw in some replicator patterns for Delta Quadrant fashions, and an entire shipment of leola root from our cargo bay.”

“Leola root?”

“A specialty of the Delta Quadrant. We wouldn’t have survived without it. It can be used for all sorts of cooking and to top it off, a it's great health food. It’ll surely give your customers a lot to talk about.”

“It’s a deal.”

Quark would only find out later that his lobes had not, in fact, heard profits in the wind.

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly, I have no idea what made me write this. Probably me watching too much DS9 of late and wishing that there were more interactions between my two fave shows :)


End file.
